18 St John Street Chambers

Victoria joined Chambers in September 2017 after successfully completing pupillage under the supervision of Simon Charles. She specialises in all business and property matters, including data protection, and is forging a busy practice as a member of the Business and Property team at 18 St John Street.

Property

Including boundary disputes, easements, restrictive covenants, adverse possession, nuisance, co-ownership, proprietary estoppel, and mortgages.

Recent experience includes:

– Successfully defending a Defendant at trial in a TLATA claim for a beneficial interest in a family property by her daughter’s ex-partner; – Advising a co-owner of a property as to issuing a possible TLATA claim and prospects for the same, which eventually led to settlement; – Advising an owner of a commercial property in respect of an easement at the rear of their property and trespass by a neighbour, and a construction of the Land Registry documents/deeds for the respective properties; – Advising a lender in respect of enforcement action in reliance on second charges and/or equitable charges.

Landlord and Tenant

Including possession claims, disrepair, forfeiture and leasehold enfranchisements

Recent experience includes:

– Regularly appearing on behalf of landlords in contested s.8 possession proceedings; – Successfully acting for a vulnerable tenant in respect of an application for a stay of possession; – Pleading a defence and counterclaim to a s.21 possession claim on behalf of tenants, raising complex issues of disrepair, tenancy deposit compensation and statutory compliance.

Trusts, Wills, Probate & the Administration of Estates

Including contentious probate, administration actions, construction of wills and trusts, claims for breach of trust, and Inheritance Act claims.

Recent experience includes:

– Acting on behalf of the Claimants in a three-day trial before His Honour Judge Haliwell QC, in a claim contesting the validity of their father’s will on the grounds of undue influence, testamentary capacity and a lack of knowledge and approval; – Acting on behalf of an individual, with a power of attorney pursuant to a divorce settlement, seeking to be substituted in the place of a long inactive executor; – Drafting a claim to in respect of an inter vivos gift of a house, raising issues of mental incapacity and undue influence; – Advising a Defendant, a close friend of the deceased, in a claim under the Inheritance Act by the deceased’s adult daughter, which eventually led to the matter settling.

Commercial

Including consumer credit actions, claims involving the sale and/or supply of goods, software disputes and partnership disputes.

Recent work includes:

– Acting on behalf of the lender at trial for a PPI claim under ss.140A and 140B of the Consumer Credit Act 1974; – Acting on behalf of a large music retailer in respect of a claim for the supply of defective/sub-standard sales/stock management software.

Data protection

Including data protection compliance and contentious data protection actions

– Advising a government department in respect of data protection compliance; – Advising, and acting on behalf of, a government department in respect of a claim for misuse of private information and GDPR/Data Protection Act 2018; – Acting on behalf of a large outsourcing firm in respect of a claim for misuse of private information and the Data Protection Act 1998.

Professional negligence

Including claims against surveyors, conveyancers, accountants and solicitors

Recent work includes:

– Acting on behalf of a purchaser in a claim against their conveyancing solicitors in respect of negligent advice, ultimately leading to settlement.

Tax

Indirect taxes and business rates

– Acting on behalf of HMRC as part of the Junior Junior scheme – Acting on behalf of businesses in respect of Magistrates’ summonses for unpaid business rates

Company & Insolvency

Including winding up petitions, bankruptcy petitions, restorations to the register, extensions of the period allowed for delivery of a charge, and applications to set aside statutory demands

– Successfully acting on behalf of a Respondent in an application to set aside a statutory demand, whereby the debt amounted to over £1million; – Regularly appearing on behalf of petitioners and debtors in the winding up list; – Advising in respect of the technical requirements for a Part 8 claim for an extension of the period allowed for delivering a charge.